Fans and media were perplexed and livid when news broke that the Chicago Bears had taken Sam Roush 69th overall in the 3rd round of the 2026 draft. Nothing about it made sense. The team already had two good tight ends. If you’re that anxious to replace Durham Smythe, who left in free agency, you can just wait until day three of the draft to grab somebody. Finding blocking tight ends isn’t that difficult. Head coach Ben Johnson and general manager Ryan Poles were unapologetic. They believed Roush had rare blocking ability for his position and would give the offense more power in the ground game.
That didn’t stop frustration from permeating, what with the team still not addressing the pass rush. All people could do was accept a missed opportunity. Was it, though? Former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer coached Roush in high school. He stated in a recent interview that people are badly overlooking how good the tight end is. He doesn’t mean as a blocker either. Pass-catching ability has always been there. A bad situation at Stanford merely hid it away. By the sound of things, it appears Bears media members are waking up to this reality after just two practices.
Sam Roush may not be Smythe. He may be another Cole Kmet.
The former Bears 2nd round pick has established himself as one of the better “Y” tight ends in the league. While not a volume pass catcher like the bigger stars, he is a solid blocker who can also be a factor in the receiving game. His huge catches against Philadelphia and Los Angeles serve as proof. Having one such type of tight end is a good thing. Now, try to imagine having two. That is likely what Johnson was imagining when the Bears elected to take Roush. The blocking ability was the first appeal, but there was untapped potential as a receiving threat.
This goes back to Johnson. One must remember the Bears head coach was a tight ends coach for several years before reaching his current status. He has a deep knowledge of the position and has demonstrated that through the draft with picks like Sam LaPorta and Colston Loveland. If he’s willing to spend a sizable selection like a 3rd rounder on Sam Roush, there had to have been a good reason beyond just good blocking. It appears we’re already seeing signs of that.
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Roush will be somebody defenses can’t account for.
Think about it. Opponents had a hard enough time containing Loveland and Kmet when they were on the field together. Try to imagine having to adjust your scheme to deal with a third big tight end who can run and catch as well. It is the nightmare scenario. For many years, most NFL teams were content to have one receiving tight end and one blocking tight end while they focused on stockpiling wide receivers. Johnson and the Bears have gone in the other direction. What happens if they stack up three tight ends who can run, catch, and block?
The short answer is chaos. There is a reason the Rams ran so much “13” personnel last season with three tight ends on the field. They recognized most defenses don’t have the bodies to match up with something like that. What is scary now is that Chicago may have better talent than L.A. did last year. Roush’s arrival cemented that. The vision is coming into focus, and it’s terrifying.
